My
son is in Kindergarten and is in a special education program. When
I went to a meeting at the school, I was told he did not qualify for
placement in a regular first grade class. If he was promoted to first
grade, he would flounder in a class with 24 children and 1 teacher
and would not get any additional help.

My
son has problems attending, and doesn't ask when he needs help.
wonder if I should have pushed to have my son promoted and placed
in a regular education class.

Wrightslaw
Replies

It
is not too late to change these plans for next year. It sounds like
the school gave you information about your options in a way that ensured
you would make the "right" decision (from the school's perspective).
Your son would flounder? The school would not provide the the individualized
services and supports they are required to provide?

You
Have Support . . .

You
need to get accurate information about retention. Included are a short
article that summarizes
retention issues, two articles about retention from the National
Association of School Psychologists, and an article about retention
and social promotion by a respected school psychologist.

Download
and read these articles. If you decide you do not want your child
to be retained, write a letter to the IEP team and ask them to meet
with you before school begins to resolve this issue. Include copies
of the articles from NASP with your letter.

.
. . from the National Association of School Psychologists

According
to the National Association of School Psychologists, retention does
not help children who are academically delayed.

"Research
does not support the notion that retention helps children to 'catch
up' and that 'social promotion' - sending children on to the next
grade regardless of performance  pushes children through the
school system without requiring mastery of basic skills.

The
National Association of School Psychologists promotes the use of interventions
that are effective and research-based and discourages the use of practices
which, though popular or widely accepted, are neither not beneficial
or are harmful to the welfare and educational attainment of Americas
children and youth. Through many years of research, the practice of
retaining children in grade has been shown to be ineffective in meeting
the needs of children who are academically delayed.

Read
the article, "Retention
is Not the Answer," by a North Carolina school psychologist.
This comprehensive article discusses retention and social promotion:

In
light of the Position Statement from the National Association of School
Psychologists, I hope the school psychologist will support you in
revoking your decision.